HEALTH ERRORS PROMPT BAN ON HOMES FOR SICK CHILDREN

State health officials have placed a ban on new admissions to Palm Beach County foster homes for seriously ill children after finding problems ranging from poor recordkeeping to the improper use of medication.

One child, prescribed medication for a month, instead received it for 10 months, nurses who reviewed the records found. Another child was given medication on the wrong days. In yet another case, the date on a prescription for lab work had been altered.

The reviewers found that foster parents are "doing a good job." The problems identified are primarily the responsibility of Health Department nurses assigned to monitor the homes and catch mistakes made by foster parents.

Reviewers found similar problems in 1996 and again last year.

Following the most recent review, conducted last month, the state Department of Health decided it will not allow additional children to be placed in the homes until the problems are corrected.

"We're taking this very seriously," said Dr. Eric Handler, deputy secretary of children's medical services for the Health Department.

The county has eight homes that care for 24 children with severe medical problems. Some have terminal illnesses and require round-the-clock nursing. One child, who was shaken as a baby, is now blind and in a vegetative state.

Oversight of the homes is shared by the Department of Children & Families and the Department of Health. Foster parents receive special training to care for the children and are monitored by nurses.

Shelley Greif, the program's nursing director, declined to comment.

Among the problems reviewers cited:

* In two cases, nurses were not monitoring children's growth. One child who was supposed to be weighed weekly had not been weighed in two months. A 15-year-old was last weighed two years ago; and the child's height was last recorded five years ago.

* In several cases, nurses were not meeting minimum requirements to visit children at least once every two months.

None of the errors or problems resulted in any harm to the children, Handler said.

"There's the opportunity for problems to surface," he said. "We want to implement a plan before this occurs."

Greif has until March 24 to submit a plan to correct the problems.

Reviewers will return in June and again in September to monitor progress. The ban will be lifted when the problems are corrected.

In the meantime, seriously ill children waiting for foster homes will remain in hospitals and special shelters. At least five are now on a waiting list for foster homes.

Karen Baker, chairwoman of the county's Human Rights Advocacy Committee, said she was unaware of the review but planned to ask state officials for a copy "to see if we need to delve into it."

The group, an independent agency that monitors social service programs, has visited about half of the county's foster homes for medically needy children in recent months.

"The homes we've been to have been wonderful," Baker said.

She said she was concerned about some of the medication errors the reviewers found.

"To me, if someone's getting medication for 10 months when they're supposed to get it for one, that's a big problem," she said.

Dawn Amora, a foster parent who cares for three children with severe medical problems, said she hopes the report will not damage the program.

"I think the quality of care is outstanding," she said. "We're taking children who have basically lived in hospitals and institutions all their lives. Kids are getting better."

Foster parents must take children to hundreds of appointments and keep track of numerous medications.